Communication device and method for wireless communications

ABSTRACT

A communication device and a method to suspend monitoring of a first radio access network (RAN) on a frequency band shared with a second RAN, comprising receiving a signal from the second RAN on the frequency band; decoding the received signal; identifying a duration during which the second RAN occupies the frequency band based on the decoded signal; and suspending monitoring of the control channel of the first RAN on the frequency band for at least the identified duration.

PRIORITY INFORMATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/828,126 filed Mar. 24, 2020, which is a is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/252,242 filed Aug. 31, 2016, now U.S.Pat. No. 10,609,692, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

The claims in the instant application are different than those of theparent application and/or other related applications. The Applicanttherefore rescinds any disclaimer of claim scope made in the parentapplication and/or any predecessor application in relation to theinstant application. Any such previous disclaimer and the citedreferences that it was made to avoid, may need to be revisited. Further,any disclaimer made in the instant application should not be read intoor against the parent application and/or other related applications.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various aspects of this disclosure relate generally to a method and adevice for wireless communications.

BACKGROUND

Release 13 of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) supportsLicensed Assisted Access (LAA) in downlink. 3GPP has implemented amandatory Listen Before Talk (LBT) mechanism for LAA evolved Node Bs(eNodeBs or eNBs) based on energy detection methods to be able to usethe unlicensed channel and co-exist with WiFi access points (APs). Atthe user equipment (UE) side, the UE has to continuously monitor for thephysical downlink control channel (PDCCH) containing the downlinkcontrol information (DCI) because the UE is unaware of the eNB'stransmission opportunities. The DCI contains vital resource assignmentsintended for the UE.

Both of these situations, i.e. the energy detection at the eNB and thePDCCH monitoring at the UE, are power intensive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, like reference characters generally refer to the sameparts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarilyto scale, emphasis instead generally being placed upon illustrating theprinciples of the invention. In the following description, variousembodiments of the invention are described with reference to thefollowing drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the implementation of the processes anddevices of this disclosure compared to current methods.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing how PDCCH monitoring and carrier sensing maybe reduced at a UE in an aspect of this disclosure

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing how carrier sensing is reduced at a UE in anaspect of this disclosure

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing how energy detection may be reduced at aneNB in an aspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a chart depicting a carrier sensing module in an aspect ofthis disclosure may be implemented at the WiFi side when LTE and WiFioperate in the same communication channel.

FIG. 6 shows three options for implementing the carrier sensing modulein an aspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart which accounts for the effect of hidden nodesbefore suspending PDCCH monitoring in an aspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 7A shows a network scenario where the process described in FIG. 7may be implemented.

FIG. 8 is an internal configuration of a communication device in anaspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 9 is an internal circuit arrangement of a communication device inan aspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a process by which to suspend monitoringfor a control channel of a first radio access network (RAN) on afrequency band shared with a second RAN in an aspect of this disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a process for a communication device on afirst radio access network (RAN) to suspend detecting for a second RANon a frequency band shared by the first RAN and the second RAN in anaspect of this disclosure.

DESCRIPTION

The following details description refers to the accompanying drawingsthat show, by way of illustration, specific details and embodiments inwhich the invention may be practiced.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example,instance, or illustration”. Any embodiment or design described herein as“exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred oradvantageous over other embodiments or designs.

The words “plural” and “multiple” in the description and the claims, ifany, are used to expressly refer to a quantity greater than one.Accordingly, any phrases explicitly invoking the aforementioned words(e.g. “a plurality of [objects]”, “multiple [objects]”) referring to aquantity of objects is intended to expressly refer more than one of thesaid objects. The terms “group”, “set”, “collection”, “series”,“sequence”, “grouping”, “selection”, etc., and the like in thedescription and in the claims, if any, are used to refer to a quantityequal to or greater than one, i.e. one or more. Accordingly, the phrases“a group of [objects]”, “a set of [objects]”, “a collection of[objects]”, “a series of [objects]”, “a sequence of [objects]”, “agrouping of [objects]”, “a selection of [objects]”, “[object] group”,“[object] set”, “[object] collection”, “[object] series”, “[object]sequence”, “[object] grouping”, “[object] selection”, etc., used hereinin relation to a quantity of objects is intended to refer to a quantityof one or more of said objects. It is appreciated that unless directlyreferred to with an explicitly stated plural quantity (e.g. “two[objects]” “three of the [objects]”, “ten or more [objects]”, “at leastfour [objects]”, etc.) or express use of the words “plural”, “multiple”,or similar phrases, references to quantities of objects are intended torefer to one or more of said objects.

As used herein, a “circuit” may be understood as any kind of a logicimplementing entity, which may be special purpose circuitry or aprocessor executing software stored in a memory, firmware, and anycombination thereof. Furthermore, a “circuit” may be a hard-wired logiccircuit or a programmable logic circuit such as a programmableprocessor, for example a microprocessor (for example a ComplexInstruction Set Computer (CISC) processor or a Reduced Instruction SetComputer (RISC) processor). A “circuit” may also be a processorexecuting software, e.g., any kind of computer program, for example, acomputer program using a virtual machine code, e.g., Java. Any otherkind of implementation of the respective functions which will bedescribed in more detail below may also be understood as a “circuit”. Itmay also be understood that any two (or more) of the described circuitsmay be combined into one circuit.

A “processing circuit” (or equivalently “processing circuitry”) as usedherein is understood as referring to any circuit that performs anoperation(s) on signal(s), such as e.g. any circuit that performsprocessing on an electrical signal or an optical signal. A processingcircuit may thus refer to any analog or digital circuitry that alters acharacteristic or property of an electrical or optical signal, which mayinclude analog and/or digital data. A processing circuit may thus referto an analog circuit (explicitly referred to as “analog processingcircuit(ry)”), digital circuit (explicitly referred to as “digitalprocessing circuit(ry)”), logic circuit, processor, microprocessor,Central Processing Unit (CPU), Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), DigitalSignal Processor (DSP), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), integratedcircuit, Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), etc., or anycombination thereof. Accordingly, a processing circuit may refer to acircuit that performs processing on an electrical or optical signal ashardware or as software, such as software executed on hardware (e.g. aprocessor or microprocessor). As utilized herein, “digital processingcircuit(ry)” may refer to a circuit implemented using digital logic thatperforms processing on a signal, e.g. an electrical or optical signal,which may include logic circuit(s), processor(s), scalar processor(s),vector processor(s), microprocessor(s), controller(s),microcontroller(s), Central Processing Unit(s) (CPU), GraphicsProcessing Unit(s) (GPU), Digital Signal Processor(s) (DSP), FieldProgrammable Gate Array(s) (FPGA), integrated circuit(s), ApplicationSpecific Integrated Circuit(s) (ASIC), or any combination thereof.Furthermore, it is understood that a single a processing circuit may beequivalently split into two separate processing circuits, and converselythat two separate processing circuits may be combined into a singleequivalent processing circuit.

As used herein, “memory” may be understood as an electrical component inwhich data or information can be stored for retrieval. References to“memory” included herein may thus be understood as referring to volatileor non-volatile memory, including random access memory (RAM), read-onlymemory (ROM), flash memory, solid-state storage, magnetic tape, harddisk drive, optical drive, etc., or any combination thereof.Furthermore, it is appreciated that registers, shift registers,processor registers, data buffers, etc., are also embraced herein by the“term” memory. It is appreciated that a single component referred to as“memory” or “a memory” may be composed of more than one different typeof memory, and thus may refer to a collective component comprising oneor more types of memory. It is readily understood that any single memory“component” may be distributed or/separated multiple substantiallyequivalent memory components, and vice versa. Furthermore, it isappreciated that while “memory” may be depicted, such as in thedrawings, as separate from one or more other components, it isunderstood that memory may be integrated within another component, suchas on a common integrated chip.

As used herein, a “cell”, in the context of telecommunications, may beunderstood as a sector served by a base station or a test box.Accordingly, a cell may be a set of geographically co-located antennasthat correspond to a particular sector of a base station. A base stationmay thus serve one or more “cells” (or “sectors”), where each cell ischaracterized by a distinct communication channel. An “inter-cellhandover” may be understood as a handover from a first “cell” to asecond “cell”, where the first “cell” is different from the second“cell”. “Inter-cell handovers” may be characterized as either“inter-base station handovers” or “intra-base station handovers”.“Inter-base station handovers” may be understood as a handover from afirst “cell” to a second “cell”, where the first “cell” is provided at afirst base station and the second “cell” is provided at a second,different, base station. “Intra-base station handovers” may beunderstood as a handover from a first “cell” to a second “cell”, wherethe first “cell” is provided at the same base station as the second“cell”. A “serving cell” may be understood as a “cell” that a mobileterminal is currently connected to according to the mobilecommunications protocols of the associated mobile communications networkstandard. Furthermore, the term “cell” may be utilized to refer to anyof a macrocell, microcell, picocell, or femtocell, etc.

The term “base station”, used in reference to an access point of amobile communications network, may be understood as a macro-basestation, micro-base station, Node B, evolved Node B (eNodeB, eNB), HomeeNodeB, Remote Radio Head (RRH), or relay point, etc. Additionally, a“base station” may be understood as a test box which provides an accesspoint to a mobile communication network in text case scenarios.

For purposes of this disclosure, radio communication technologies may beclassified as one of a short range radio communication technology (i.e.radio access technology (RAT)), Metropolitan Area System radiocommunication technology, or Cellular Wide Area radio communicationtechnology. Short Range radio communication technologies includeBluetooth, WLAN (e.g. according to any IEEE 802.11 standard), and othersimilar radio communication technologies. Metropolitan Area System radiocommunication technologies include Worldwide Interoperability forMicrowave Access (WiMax) (e.g. according to an IEEE 802.16 radiocommunication standard, e.g. WiMax fixed or WiMax mobile) and othersimilar radio communication technologies. Cellular Wide Area radiocommunication technologies include Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access 2000 (CDMA2000),Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution(LTE), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Evolution-Data Optimized(EV-DO), Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), High Speed PacketAccess (HSPA), etc., and other similar radio communication technologies.Cellular Wide Area radio communication technologies also include “smallcells” of such technologies, such as microcells, femtocells, andpicocells. Cellular Wide Area radio communication technologies may begenerally referred to herein as “cellular” communication technologies.It is understood that exemplary scenarios detailed herein aredemonstrative in nature, and accordingly may be similarly applied tovarious other mobile communication technologies, both existing and notyet formulated, particularly in cases where such mobile communicationtechnologies share similar features as disclosed regarding the followingexamples.

The term “network” as utilized herein, e.g. in reference to acommunication network such as a mobile communication network, isintended to encompass both an access component of a network (e.g. aradio access network (RAN) component) and a core component of a network(e.g. a core network component).

To accommodate ever-increasing traffic demand, the 3GPP has proposed theLicensed Assisted Access (LAA) mechanism in order to supplementoperation of the LTE licensed spectrum with LTE operation in theunlicensed spectrum. An important factor in implementing LAA iscoexistence with incumbent systems in the unlicensed spectrum, e.g.WiFi. In order to standardize operation of LTE in the unlicensedspectrum, e.g. in WiFi bands, the Listen Before Talk (LBT) contentionprotocol was introduced to coexist with other devices operating on thesame band. An important factor in the LBT mechanism, i.e. in EnergyDetection (ED), is the ED threshold which determines the level at whichother transmissions are deemed to be occurring on the medium.

In LBT, the radio transmitter first senses the transmission medium, i.e.the band, and transmits only if it senses that the medium is idle. LBTutilizes energy detection (ED) to determine the presence of othersignals on the medium. The eNB's employing LAA have to continuouslyperform the LBT procedure, i.e. ED. Through current implementations ofED, the UE/eNB can only detect if the communication channel, i.e. theunlicensed spectrum band, is idle or busy for one WiFi slot. The UE/eNBcannot detect how long the channel will remain busy.

Similarly, even though the LTE signal in the unlicensed spectrum is nottransmitted continuously, the UE will continuously monitor theunlicensed spectrum for PDCCH as long as the secondary cell is active, aprocess which is power intensive. In other words, if the unlicensedspectrum band is occupied transmitting WiFi signals, the UE will stillmonitor the channel for PDDCH. The primary cell is the main cell withwhich the UE communicates and maintains its connection with the network,e.g. the eNB serving cell. One or more secondary cells may be allocatedand activated to the UE to support carrier aggregation for additionalbandwidth.

FIG. 1 is a diagram 100 showing the implementation of the processes anddevices disclosed herein. It is appreciated that diagram 100 isexemplary in nature and may therefore be simplified for purposes of thisexplanation.

Diagram 100 displays a comparison of current methods 110 versus methodsdisclosed in aspects of this disclosure 120. Diagram 100 depicts channelusage of the unlicensed spectrum between two RATs (i.e. WiFi and LTE) ona shared channel.

In current methods 110, the UE continuously performs PDCCH monitoring110 a of the shared channel. For example, the UE continuously monitorsthe secondary channel, i.e. the unlicensed frequency band in thisexample, even though the channel may transmitting communications viaanother radio access technology (RAT), i.e. WiFi. By doing so, the UEexpends unneeded power by monitoring the channel for PDCCH when there isno possibility that there will be PDCCH broadcast on the channel sinceanother RAT is currently using the channel.

Similarly, the eNB (or, in other cases, the UE) continuously performsEnergy Detection (ED) 110 b of the shared channel, i.e. the unlicensedfrequency band, in order to implement the LBT mechanism. As demonstratedby 100 b, the eNB employs ED to continuously monitor the channel whileit is not being used for its own purposes, i.e. LTE, a process which isvery power intensive.

In aspects of this disclosure 120, the PDDCH monitoring and ED aresignificantly reduced, thereby conserving power at both the UE and eNBside, by implementing a carrier sensing module at the UE and the eNB.The carrier sensing module may include circuitry/hardware andcorresponding software to detect another other RAT, e.g. a WiFi packet;decode it; and extract an information from the decoded signal in orderto suspend the PDCCH monitoring and/or ED. Each WiFi packet (i.e. each802.11 PHY layer packet) contains a preamble, a header, and a payloaddata. The preamble allows a receiver to synchronize the time andfrequency of the signal, the header provides information about thepacket configuration, while the payload data contains the data beingtransmitted.

The underlying principle of this disclosure is a carrier sensing moduleat the UE or the eNB that receives the WiFi signal, decodes it, and fromthe WiFi packet preamble, is able to extract a duration information inorder to assess for how long the channel will remain busy with acontinuous WiFi transmission. This duration information may be obtainedfrom the Network Allocation Vector (NAV), a virtual timer mechanism usedin wireless protocols such as IE 802.11, i.e. WiFi. The Media AccessControl (MAC) layer frame headers contain a duration field thatspecifies the transmission time required for the frame. If the NAVcontains a value, it can be thought of as a counter, which will countdown to zero from that value at a uniform rate. In other words, when theNAV value is non-zero, the channel will be busy, and when the NAV valueis zero, the channel is idle and available to use for other RATs, e.g.by the UE or the eNB to send and/or receive LTE transmissions. Once thecarrier sensing module determines the NAV, it can suspend the PDCCHmonitoring or ED during the duration set by the NAV in order to conservepower at the UE and/or the eNB.

By implementing the carrier sensing module, the UE can suspend PDCCHmonitoring for long durations of time 120 a in order to save power.While the UE may expend extra power due to the intermittent carriersensing, the extra power consumption from the carrier sensing at the UEis much smaller compared performing continuous PDCCH monitoring,yielding net power savings.

FIG. 2 is a diagram 200 showing how PDCCH monitoring is reduced in anaspect of this disclosure. It is appreciated that diagram 200 isexemplary in nature and may thus be simplified for purposes of thisexplanation.

In diagram 200, the LAA UE has a carrier sensing module that is capableof decoding a received WiFi signal and use the decoded information inorder to implement efficient carrier sensing/energy detection (ED).Since LAA is supported in the UL in 3GPP Release 14, it will bemandatory for UE to have a module for ED.

Diagram 200 shows an option (i.e. Opt1) in an aspect of this disclosurewhere the WiFi signal is detected at the UE. The carrier sensing module202 at the UE detects a WiFi signal 212 while the LTE PHY layer 204 ofthe UE performs continuous PDCCH monitoring of the channel 204. Thecarrier sensing module decodes the WiFi packet 216, including thephysical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) preamble, from which thecarrier sensing module determines the NAV and/or the Request toSend/Clear to Send (RTS/CTS) frames. The RTS/CTS is a mechanism used by802.11 wireless networking protocol to reduce frame collisions presentedby the hidden node problem. Each of the RTS and the CTS frame fieldsinclude a duration field, among other fields. After determining theduration information from the WiFi signal received in 212, the carriersensing module sends the duration information, which may include a STARTTIME and END TIME, to the LTE PHY layer in 216, at which point the UEcan suspend carrier sensing 218 and discontinue PDCCH monitoring 220until at least the END TIME 224, resulting in a power save 222.

Since the channel can be used by the LAA eNB only after minimum LBT andat the sub-frame boundary or the 7th symbol of the subframe, PDCCHmonitoring can be suspended for more than the END TIME, and may beextended until 224 a.

In LAA, the blind PDCCH monitoring currently used is very expensive asthe transmission can start in either symbol 0 or symbol 7 of the LTEsubframe. This monitoring keeps the reception (RX) chain for the carrierON for almost the entirety of the subframe. The intermittent carriersensing module introduced in this disclosure consumes less powercompared to this blind PDCCH monitoring. The NAV value can be as largeras 32.767 ms. By implementing the carrier sensing module of thisdisclosure, a significant amount of power may be saved.

FIG. 3 shows a diagram 300 explaining other options for suspending PDCCHmonitoring in an aspect of this disclosure. The carrier sensing modulein 300 can suspend carrier sensing/PDCCH monitoring based on thedetection of the LTE signal in the unlicensed band. It is appreciatedthat diagram 300 is exemplary in nature and may thus be simplified forpurposes of this explanation.

The first example 300 a in diagram 300 shows an option 2 (Opt2) wherethe UE detects an LTE signal in the situation where there is no PDCCHallocated 316 to the UE. According to Release 13 of the 3GPP, the LAAeNB shall transmit at least one complete subframe optionally preceded orproceeded by full or partial subframes. Accordingly, whenever an LTEsignal is detected 312 by the UE, i.e. meeting the 3GPP specified energythreshold, the UE can assume that the carrier sensing/ED may besuspended for 1 ms 314, resulting in a power save 318 due to thesuspension of the carrier sensing/ED monitoring.

The second example 300 b in diagram 300 shows another option (Opt3)where the UE detects the LTE signal in a situation where there is PDDCHallocated 326 to the UE. Upon detecting the LTE signal in 322, the UEcan suspend carrier sensing/ED 324, similarly as shown in 314. However,in this case, the PDCCH monitoring 326 detects PDCCH allocated for theUE and checks the length of continuous transmission, which may be 1subframe (i.e. 1 ms) or multiple subframes. The length of PDCCHallocation may be more than 1 ms as partial subframes are indicated onesubframe in advance. Accordingly, the LTE PHY layer would be able tosend this duration information 328 to the carrier sensing module, whichwould result in additional time for which carrier sensing/ED can besuspended 330, resulting in total power savings 332.

FIG. 4 is a chart 400 comparing the behavior of an LAA eNB meeting the3GPP requirements 410 versus an LAA eNB disclosed in an aspect of thisdisclosure 420. It is appreciated that chart 400 is exemplary in natureand may therefore be simplified for purposes of this explanation.

In 410, an LAA eNB without the carrier sensing module of this disclosureis shown, i.e. an LAA eNB meeting the requirements specified in 3GPP.The eNB continuously employs the LBT mechanism based on ED 415 while itis not actively using the communication channel (also shown in 110 b inFIG. 1 ). This mechanism leads to large amounts of power consumption.

In 420, an LAA eNB with the carrier sensing module of this disclosure isshown. The carrier sensing module is configured to detect the WiFisignal and decode the preamble for the NAV and/or decode the RTC/CTS fortheir respective duration fields 430. In this manner, the carriersensing module is able to determine a length of time of the continuousWiFi transmission and can suspend the carrier sensing/ED for this lengthof time, e.g. until an END TIME as determined by the carrier sensingmodule from the NAV. This results in a power save for a span of 434.Once the duration is achieved, e.g. the NAV value is zero, the eNB willresume carrier sensing 436, at which point the process shown by 430-432may be repeated.

FIG. 5 is a chart 500 showing how a carrier sensing module in an aspectof this disclosure may be implemented at the WiFi side, i.e. at the WiFirouter or the WiFi hardware/circuitry of the UE, with a common carriersensing method when LTE and WiFi operate in the same channel. It isappreciated that chart 500 is exemplary in nature and may therefore besimplified for purposes of this explanation.

In 502, the PDCCH monitoring decodes the LTE signal. Uplink (UL) data onthe Wifi Side triggers Energy Detection (ED) 504. Upon decoding the LTEsignal in 502, the LTE layer sends a reception/transmission (Rx/Tx)indication 506 to the WiFi layer with a duration information includinghow long the LTE communication will occupy the communication channel,i.e. a duration for which carrier sensing and/or ED may be suspended.This may include a START TIME and/or END TIME.

Once the WiFi layer received the indication, it can suspend carriersensing and energy detection (ED) 508 until at least the END TIME 512and possibly until the END TIME plus the minimum time needed for the LBTmechanism 512 a. Therefore, power can be saved for at least the spanindicated by 510. Once the END TIME (or END TIME+MIN LBT) is reached,the WiFi layer may resume with carrier sensing and ED 514.

FIG. 6 depicts different options 610-630 for implementing the carriersensing module in an aspect of this disclosure. It is appreciated thatoptions 610-630 are exemplary in nature and may be simplified forpurposes of this explanation.

In one option in an aspect of this disclosure 610, the carrier sensingmodule may be added to the LTE module. In this option, both the WiFi andLTE modules may be capable of carrier sensing, energy detection (ED),and RTS/CTS detection. Both modules may be further capable of decoding areceived RAT signal in order to determine a duration information andsuspend carrier sensing/ED and/or PDCCH monitoring for the appropriateRAT.

In another option in an aspect of this disclosure 620, the carriersensing module may be implemented at a common module shared between LTEand WiFi. The carrier sensing module may be configured to operate in atleast substantially the same manner as the carrier sensing moduledescribed in 610 above.

In another option in an aspect of this disclosure 630, the WiFi carriersensing module may be configured to share data (i.e. NAV duration data)with LTE. The carrier sensing module may be configured to operate in atleast substantially the same manner as the carrier sensing moduledescribed in 610 above.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart 700 showing an aspect of this disclosure whichaccounts for the effect of hidden nodes (hidden node problem shown inFIG. 7A) before suspending PDCCH monitoring. It is appreciated thatflowchart 700 is exemplary in nature and may be simplified for purposesof this explanation.

FIG. 7A shows a network 750 depicting a hidden node problem existingbetween the eNB 752 (and its corresponding cell 752 a) and a WiFi Accesspoint (AP) 754 (and its corresponding coverage region 754 a). It isappreciated that network 750 is exemplary in nature and may besimplified for purposes of this explanation.

The UE 756 may perform the LBT mechanism, i.e. ED, and determine thatthe channel (i.e. the unlicensed frequency band) is occupied by a signalfrom WiFi AP 754. However, the WiFi signal may not reach eNB 752, and asa result, eNB 752 may find the channel idle. Therefore, eNB 752 mayschedule PDCCH for the UE 756. In order to account for this scenario ofincorrectly suspending PDCCH monitoring at the UE 756, the UE may beconfigured to implement the process shown in flowchart 700 of FIG. 7 .

After the received WiFi signal is decoded and its signal strength ismeasured 710, the UE is configured to compare the WiFi signal strengthto a threshold (TH1) 712, i.e. an ED threshold. TH1 determines the levelof sensitivity to declare the existence of existing WiFi communications.The initial value of TH1 should be higher than the LBT thresholdsdefined in 3GPP TR 36.889 to ensure that PDCCH monitoring is notsuspended unless the WiFi signal is of adequate strength.

If the UE determines that the WiFi signal does not meet the TH1 in 712(i.e. the strength of the WiFi signal is less than the threshold), theUE attempts to monitor the communication channel for PDCCH 720. If thePDCCH monitoring is successful, i.e. the UE receives PDCCH from eNB, theUE increases TH1 by a step size “a” 726 to minimize the chance ofsuspending PDCCH monitoring. If the PDCCH monitoring is not successful,i.e. the UE does not receive PDCCH from the eNB, the UE decreases TH1 bystep size “b” 724 to increase the chance of suspending PDCCH monitoring.In either case, the UE compares the modified TH1 (i.e. TH1+a or TH1−b)to the WiFi signal strength again in 712 and repeats the process.

If the WiFi signal meets the TH1 in 712 (i.e. the strength of the WiFisignal is greater than or equal to the threshold), the UE is configuredto suspend PDCCH monitoring 728. If the UE detects an increase inretransmissions in the LTE downlink (DL) 730, i.e. when there are hybridautomatic repeat request (HARQ) retransmissions or radio link control(RLC) layer retransmissions, this means that the sensitivity of TH1 wastoo low. The UE is configured to increase TH1 by a step size “a” 726 tominimize the chance of incorrectly suspending PDCCH monitoring. If thereis no increase in retransmission in the DL, the UE is configured todecrease TH1 by a step size “b” 724 in order to increase the chance ofsuspending PDCCH monitoring. In either case, the UE compares themodified TH1 (i.e. TH1+a or TH1−b) to the WiFi signal strength again in712 and repeats the process.

As shown by flowchart 700, the UE, in an aspect of this disclosure, isable to implement hardware and/or software in order to tune thethreshold by which determine whether PDCCH monitoring may be suspended.Furthermore, step sizes “a” and “b” may be adjusted in order to increaseperformance, e.g. by adjusting the step size by a predeterminedpercentage according to a certain deployment.

FIG. 8 shows a communication device 800 which may be configured tosuspend PDCCH monitoring and/or ED/carrier sensing. It is appreciatedthat communication device 800 is exemplary in nature and may thus besimplified for purposes of this explanation. For example, communicationdevice 800 may include other components not pictured or described in theensuing description.

As shown in FIG. 8 , communication device 800 may include antenna system802, radio frequency (RF) transceiver 804, baseband modem 806 (includingphysical layer processing circuit 808 and controller 810), data source812, memory 814, and data sink 816.

These components may be implemented as separate components. However, asdepicted in FIG. 8 , it is appreciated that the configuration ofcommunication device 800 is for purposes of explanation, andaccordingly, one or more of the aforementioned components ofcommunication device 800 may be integrated into a single equivalentcomponent or divided into multiple components with collectiveequivalence. It is also appreciated that communication device 800 mayhave one or more additional components, such as hardware, software, orfirmware elements. For example, communication device 800 may alsoinclude various additional components including processors,microprocessors, at least one memory component, subscriber identitymodule(s) (SIM), at least one power supply, peripheral device(s) andother specialty or generic hardware, processors, or circuits, etc., inorder to support a variety of additional operations. The at least onememory component of communication device 800 may be configured to storeprogram instructions. Communication device 800 may also include avariety of user input/output devices, such as display(s), keypad(s),touchscreen(s), speaker(s), microphone(s), button(s), camera(s), etc.

In an abridged operational overview, communication device 800 maytransmit and receive radio signals according to multiple differentwireless access protocols or radio access technologies (RATs), forexample, any one or combination of: Long-Term Evolution (LTE), GlobalSystem for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA),Wideband CDMA (W-CDMA), Wi-Fi, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN),Bluetooth, etc. Baseband modem 806 may direct such communicationfunctionality of communication device 800 according to the communicationprotocols associated with each RAT, and may execute control over antennasystem 802 and RF transceiver 804 in order to transmit and receive radiosignals according to the formatting and scheduling parameters defined byeach communication protocol.

Communication device 800 may transmit and receive radio signals withantenna system 802, which may be a single antenna or an antenna arraycomposed of multiple antennas and may additionally include analogantenna combination and/or beamforming circuitry. In the receive path(RX), RF transceiver 804 may receive analog radio frequency signals fromantenna system 802 and perform analog and digital RF front-endprocessing on the analog radio frequency signals to produce digitalbaseband samples to provide to baseband modem 806. RF transceiver 804may accordingly include analog and digital reception circuitry includingamplifiers (e.g. a Low Noise Amplifier, filters, RF demodulators), andanalog-to-digital converters (ADCs) to convert the received radiofrequency signals to digital baseband samples. In the transmit path(TX), RF transceiver 804 may receive digital baseband samples frombaseband modem 806 and perform analog and digital RF front-endprocessing on the digital baseband samples to produce analog radiofrequency signals to provide to antenna system 802 for wirelesstransmission. RF transceiver 804 may thus include analog and digitaltransmission circuitry including amplifiers (e.g. a Power Amplifier,filters, RF modulators), and digital-to-analog converters (DACs) to mixthe digital baseband samples received from baseband modem 806 to producethe analog radio frequency signals for wireless transmission by antennasystem 802. Baseband modem 806 may control the RF transmission andreception of RF transceiver 804, including specifying transmit andreceive radio frequencies for operation of RF transceiver 804.

As shown in FIG. 8 , baseband modem 806 may include a physical layerprocessing circuit 808, which may perform physical layer (Layer 1)transmission and reception (TX/RX) processing to prepare outgoingtransmit data provided by controller 810 for transmission via RFtransceiver 804 and prepare incoming received data provided by RFtransceiver 804 for processing by controller 810. The physical layerprocessing circuit 808 may accordingly perform one or more of errordetection, forward error correction encoding/decoding, channel codingand interleaving, physical channel modulation/demodulation, physicalchannel mapping, radio measurement and search, frequency and timesynchronization, antenna diversity processing, power control andweighting, rate matching, retransmission processing, etc. The physicallayer processing circuit 808 may be structurally realized as hardwarelogic, e.g. as an integrated circuit or FPGA, as software logic, e.g. asprogram code defining arithmetic, control, and I/O instructions storedin a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and executed on aprocessor, or as a combination of hardware and software logic. Althoughnot explicitly shown in FIG. 8 , the physical layer processing circuit808 may include a control circuit such as a processor configured tocontrol the various hardware and software processing components of thephysical layer processing circuit 808 in accordance with physical layercontrol logic defined by the communications protocol for the relevantRATs. Furthermore, while the physical layer processing circuit 808 isdepicted as a single component in FIG. 8 , the physical layer processingcircuit 808 may be collectively composed separate sections of physicallayer processing circuitry where each respective section is dedicated tothe physical layer processing of a particular RAT.

Communication device 800 may be configured to operate according to oneor more RATs, which may be directed by controller 810. Controller 810may thus be responsible for controlling the radio communicationcomponents of communication device 800 (antenna system 802, RFtransceiver 804, and the physical layer processing circuit 808) inaccordance with the communication protocols of each supported RAT, andaccordingly may represent the Access Stratum (AS) and Non-Access Stratum(NAS) (encompassing Layer 2 and Layer 3) of each supported RAT.Controller 810 may be structurally embodied as a protocol processorconfigured to execute protocol software retrieved from controller memoryMEM and subsequently control the radio communication components ofcommunication device 800 in order to transmit and receive communicationsignals in accordance with the corresponding protocol control logicdefined in the protocol software.

Controller 810 may therefore be configured to manage the radiocommunication functionality of communication device 800 in order tocommunicate with the various radio and core network components of anetwork, and accordingly may be configured according to thecommunication protocols for both the LTE network and the GSM/UMTS legacynetwork. Controller 810 may either be a unified controller that iscollectively responsible for all supported RATs (e.g. LTE and GSM/UMTS)or may be composed of multiple separate controllers where eachcontroller is a dedicated controller for a particular RAT, such as e.g.a dedicated LTE controller and a dedicated legacy controller (oralternatively a dedicated LTE controller, dedicated GSM controller, anda dedicated UMTS controller). Regardless, controller 810 may beresponsible for directing radio communication activity of communicationdevice 800 according to the communication protocols of the LTE andlegacy networks. As previously noted regarding the physical layerprocessing circuit 808, one or both of antenna system 802 and RFtransceiver 804 may similarly be partitioned into multiple dedicatedcomponents that each respectively correspond to one or more of thesupported RATs. Depending on the specifics of each such configurationand the number of supported RATs, controller 810 may be configured tocontrol the radio communication operations of communication device 800in accordance with a master/slave RAT hierarchical scheme or a multi-SIMscheme.

Communication device 800 may further comprise data source 812, memory814, and data sink 816, where data source 812 may include sources ofcommunication data above controller 810 (i.e. above the NAS/Layer 3) anddata sink 816 may include destinations of communication data abovecontroller 810 (i.e. above the NAS/Layer 3). Such may include, forexample, an application processor of communication device 800, which maybe configured to execute various applications and/or programs ofcommunication device 800 at an application layer of communication device800, such as e.g. an Operating System (OS), a User Interface (UI) forsupporting user interaction with communication device 800, and/orvarious user applications. The application processor may interface withbaseband modem 806 (as data source 812/data sink 816) as an applicationlayer to transmit and receive user data such as voice data,audio/video/image data, messaging data, application data, basicInternet/web access data, etc., over a the radio network connection(s)provided by baseband modem 806. Data source 812 and data sink 816 mayadditionally represent various user input/output devices ofcommunication device 800, such as display(s), keypad(s), touchscreen(s),speaker(s), external button(s), camera(s), microphone(s), etc., whichmay allow a user of communication device 800 to control variouscommunication functions of communication device 800 associated with userdata.

Memory 814 may embody a memory component of communication device 800,such as e.g. a hard drive or another such permanent memory device.Although not explicitly depicted in FIG. 8 , the various othercomponents of communication device 800 shown in FIG. 8 may additionallyeach include integrated permanent and non-permanent memory components,such as for storing software program code, buffering data, etc.

It is understood that a person of skill in the art will appreciate thecorresponding structure disclosed herein, be it in explicit reference toa physical structure and/or in the form of mathematical formulas, prose,flow charts, or any other manner providing sufficient structure (such ase.g. regarding an algorithm). The components of baseband modem 806 maybe detailed herein substantially in terms of functional operation inrecognition that a person of skill in the art may readily appreciate thevarious possible structural realizations of baseband modem 806 usingdigital processing circuitry that will provide the desiredfunctionality.

The baseband modem 806 is configured to perform the processes disclosedherein.

FIG. 9 shows an internal arrangement of a communication device 900configured to suspend PDDCH monitoring and/or ED detection in an aspectof this disclosure. It is appreciated that communication device 900 isexemplary in nature and may omit certain components that are notdirectly related to this disclosure. Antenna system 802, RF transceiver804, and the physical layer processing circuit 808 correspond to thesimilarly labeled components of FIG. 8 . While the ensuing explanationinvolves WiFi signals, it is appreciated that the disclosure can beapplied to other RATs as well.

As shown in FIG. 9 , the physical layer processing circuit 808 mayinclude carrier sensing circuitry 902, which may comprise adetector/receiver (RX) circuit 910, a decoding circuit 912, and anextraction circuit 914. Each of the aforementioned components of carriersensing circuitry 902 may be structurally realized as hardware logic,e.g. as one or more integrated circuits or FPGAs, as software logic,e.g. as one or more processors executing program code that definingarithmetic, control, and I/O instructions stored in a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium, or as a combination of hardware andsoftware logic. Skilled persons will appreciate the possibility toembody each component of carrier sensing circuitry 902 in softwareand/or software according to the functionality detailed herein.

As will be detailed, in an aspect of this disclosure carrier sensingcircuitry 902 may be a circuit arrangement comprising a detector/RXcircuit 910 configured to receive a WiFi signal which may comprise aWiFi packet. The decoder circuit 912 is configured to decode thereceived WiFi signal, i.e. the WiFi packet, in order to produce the WiFipreamble, which may comprise of a duration information such as a NAV.Extractor circuit 914 is configured to extract the duration information,e.g. the NAV, from the preamble in order to produce a durationindicating how long the WiFi signal will continuously employ thecommunication channel.

The circuitry shown in FIG. 9 may be employed at either the UE (forsuspending PDCCH monitoring or ED) or the eNB (for suspending ED).

FIG. 10 shows a flowchart 1000 in an aspect of this disclosure. It isappreciated that flowchart 1000 is exemplary in nature and may thus besimplified for purposes of this explanation. Flowchart 1000 shows amethod for a communication device to suspend monitoring for a controlchannel of a first radio access network (RAN), e.g. LTE, on a frequencyband shared with a second RAN, e.g. WiFi.

In 1002, the communication device receives the signal from the secondRAN on the frequency band shared between the two RANs. In 1004, thereceived signal is decoded. In 1006, a duration, e.g. a NAV value fromthe preamble of a WiFi packet, during which the second RAN occupies thefrequency band is identified based on the decoded signal. In 1008, thecommunication device suspends the monitoring of the control channel ofthe first RAN on the frequency band shared by the two RANs for at leastthe duration identified from the decoded signal.

FIG. 11 shows a flowchart 1100 in an aspect of this disclosure. It isappreciated that flowchart 1100 is exemplary in nature and may thus besimplified for purposes of this explanation. Flowchart 1100 shows amethod for a communication device on a first radio access network (RAN)to suspend detecting for a second RAN on a frequency band shared by thefirst RAN and the second RAN.

In 1102, the communication device receives a signal from the second RANon the frequency band shared by the first RAN and the second RAN. Thissignal may be a WiFi signal comprising a packet with a preamble. Thepreamble may comprise a NAV value. In 1104, the received signal isdecoded. In 1106, a duration during which the second RAN occupies thefrequency band is identified from the decoded signal. This duration, forexample, may be the NAV value. In 1108, the communication devicesuspends carrier sensing (i.e. detecting) for the second RAN at leastfor the duration identified.

In Example 1, a method for suspending monitoring of a control channel ofa first radio access network (RAN) on a frequency band shared with asecond RAN used in a communication device, the method comprising:receiving a signal from the second RAN on the frequency band; decodingthe received signal; identifying a duration during which the second RANoccupies the frequency band based on the decoded signal; and suspendingmonitoring of the control channel of the first RAN on the frequency bandfor at least the identified duration.

In Example 2, the subject matter of Example 1 may include resumingmonitoring of the control channel of the first RAN on the frequency bandafter the completion of the identified duration.

In Example 3, the subject matter of Examples 1-2 may include wherein thefrequency band is in an unlicensed frequency.

In Example 4, the subject matter of Examples 1-3 may include wherein thefirst RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 5, the subject matter of Examples 1-4 may include wherein thecontrol channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDDCH).

In Example 6, the subject matter of Examples 1-5 may include wherein thesecond RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 7, the subject matter of Example 6 may include wherein theshort range RAN is WiFi.

In Example 8, the subject matter of Example 7 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a preamble.

In Example 9, the subject matter of Example 8 may include wherein thepreamble comprises a Network Allocation Vector (NAV) value.

In Example 10, the subject matter of Example 9 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the NAVvalue from the preamble.

In Example 11, the subject matter of Example 7 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a Request to Send/Clear toSend (RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value.

In Example 12, the subject matter of Example 11 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the durationvalue from the RTS/CTS frame.

In Example 13, the subject matter of Examples 1-12 may includesuspending detection of the second RAN for at least the identifiedduration.

In Example 14, a method for monitoring a shared frequency band of acontrol channel transmitted on a first radio access network (RAN) usedin a communication device, the method comprising: measuring a signalstrength of a second RAN signal on the shared frequency band; andsuspending monitoring of the control channel on the shared frequencyband when the measured signal strength is greater or equal to athreshold.

In Example 15, the subject matter of Example 14 may include activatingmonitoring of the control channel on the shared frequency band when thesignal strength is less than the threshold.

In Example 16, the subject matter of Examples 14-15 may include whereinif monitoring for the control channel is suspended on the sharedfrequency band, further comprising determining if an increase inretransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs.

In Example 17, the subject matter of Example 16 may include wherein ifan increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs,increasing the threshold by a step size.

In Example 18, the subject matter of Example 17 may include comparingthe signal strength from the second RAN to the increased threshold.

In Example 19, the subject matter of Example 16 may include wherein ifno increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs,decreasing the threshold by a step size.

In Example 20, the subject matter of Example 19 may include comparingthe signal strength of the second RAN with the decreased threshold.

In Example 21, the subject matter of Example 15 may include wherein ifmonitoring of the control channel is activated on the shared frequencyband, determining if the control channel was received at thecommunication device.

In Example 22, the subject matter of Example 21 may include wherein ifthe control channel was received at the communication device, increasingthe threshold by a step size.

In Example 23, the subject matter of Example 22 may include comparingthe signal strength of the second RAN with the increased threshold.

In Example 24, the subject matter of Example 21 may include wherein ifno control channel is received at the communication device, decreasingthe threshold by a step size.

In Example 25, the subject matter of Example 24 may include comparingthe signal strength of the second RAN to the decreased threshold.

In Example 26, the subject matter of Examples 14-25 may include whereinthe control channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

In Example 27, the subject matter of Examples 14-26 may include whereinthe first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 28, the subject matter of Examples 14-27 may include whereinthe second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 29, the subject matter of Example 28 may include wherein theshort range RAN is a WiFi network.

In Example 30, a method for suspending carrier sensing of a second radioaccess network (RAN) on a frequency band shared with a first RAN used ina communication device, the method comprising receiving a signal of thesecond RAN on the frequency band; decoding the received signal;identifying a duration during which the second RAN occupies thefrequency band based on the decoded signal; and suspending carriersensing of the second RAN for at least for the identified duration.

In Example 31, the subject matter of Example 30 may include activatingcarrier sensing of the second RAN on the frequency band after thecompletion of the identified duration.

In Example 32, the subject matter of Examples 30-31 may include whereinthe communication device is an Evolved Node B (eNB).

In Example 33, the subject matter of Example 32 may include wherein thefirst RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 34, the subject matter of Examples 30-33 may include whereinthe second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 35, the subject matter of Example 34 may include wherein theshort range RAN is a WiFi network.

In Example 36, the subject matter of Example 35 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a preamble.

In Example 37, the subject matter of Example 36 may include wherein thepreamble comprises a Network Allocation Vector (NAV) value.

In Example 38, the subject matter of Example 37 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the NAVvalue from the preamble.

In Example 39, the subject matter of Example 36 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a Request to Send/Clear toSend (RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value.

In Example 40, the subject matter of Example 39 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on theshared frequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting theduration value from the RTS/CTS frame.

In Example 41, a circuit arrangement for a communication device, thecircuit arrangement comprising circuitry configured to receive signalsfrom a first radio access network (RAN) and a second RAN; decode asignal from the first RAN; identify a duration during which the firstRAN will occupy a frequency band shared by the first RAN and the secondRAN from the decoded signal; and suspend monitoring of the first RAN onthe frequency band for at least the determined duration.

In Example 42, the subject matter of Example 41 may include circuitryconfigured to resume monitoring of the first RAN on the frequency bandafter the completion of the duration.

In Example 43, the subject matter of Examples 41-42 may include whereinthe first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 44, the subject matter of Examples 41-43 may include whereinthe monitoring on the first RAN is a physical downlink control channel(PDDCH) monitoring.

In Example 45, the subject matter of Examples 41-44 may include whereinthe second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 46, the subject matter of Example 45 may include wherein theshort range RAN is WiFi.

In Example 47, the subject matter of Example 46 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a WiFi packet.

In Example 48, the subject matter of Example 47 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a preamble of the WiFipacket.

In Example 49, the subject matter of Example 48 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a Network Allocation Vector(NAV) value from the preamble.

In Example 50, the subject matter of Example 49 may include wherein theidentifying circuitry is configured to identify the NAV value as theduration.

In Example 51, the subject matter of Example 48 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode Request to Send/Clear to Send(RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value from the WiFi packet.

In Example 52, the subject matter of Example 51 may include wherein theidentifying circuitry is configured to identify the RTS/CTS frameduration value as the duration.

In Example 53, a communication device adapted to suspend monitoring of acontrol channel of a first radio access network (RAN) on a frequencyband shared with a second RAN, comprising a first transceiver configuredto receive signals from a first radio access network (RAN) on afrequency band shared with a second RAN; and a second transceiverconfigured to receive signals from the second RAN on the sharedfrequency band; decoding circuitry configured to decode a signalreceived on the first RAN; processing circuitry configured to determinea duration during which the first RAN occupies the shared frequency bandbased on the decoded signal and further configured to suspend monitoringof the first RAN on the shared frequency band for at least thedetermined duration.

In Example 54, the subject matter of Example 53 may include wherein theprocessing circuitry is further configured to resume monitoring of thefirst RAN on the frequency band after the completion of the determinedduration.

In Example 55, the subject matter of Examples 53-54 may include whereinthe first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 56, the subject matter of Examples 53-55 may include whereinthe circuit arrangement comprises circuitry configured to monitor for aphysical downlink control channel (PDDCH).

In Example 57, the subject matter of Examples 53-56 may include whereinthe second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 58, the subject matter of Example 57 may include wherein theshort range RAN is WiFi.

In Example 59, the subject matter of Example 58 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a WiFi packet.

In Example 60, the subject matter of Example 59 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a preamble of the WiFipacket.

In Example 61, the subject matter of Example 60 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode a Network Allocation Vector(NAV) value from the preamble.

In Example 62, the subject matter of Example 61 may include wherein theidentifying circuitry is configured to identify the NAV value as theduration.

In Example 63, the subject matter of Example 59 may include wherein thedecoding circuitry is configured to decode Request to Send/Clear to Send(RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value from the WiFi packet.

In Example 64, the subject matter of Example 63 may include wherein theidentifying circuitry is configured to identify the RTS/CTS frameduration value as the duration.

In Example 65, a circuit arrangement for a communication device, thecircuit arrangement comprising measuring circuitry configured to measurea signal strength of a first radio access network (RAN) signal on ashared frequency band; and processing circuitry configured to comparethe signal strength to a threshold and further configured to at leastone of: suspend monitoring of a control channel of the second RAN on theshared frequency band if the signal strength is greater than or equal tothe threshold, or activate monitoring of the control channel of thesecond RAN on the shared frequency band if the signal strength is lessthan the threshold.

In Example 66, the subject matter of Example 65 may include theprocessing circuitry further configured to determine if an increase inretransmissions of the second RAN in the shared frequency band occurs.

In Example 67, the subject matter of Example 66 may include wherein ifan increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs, theprocessing circuitry is further configured to increase the threshold bya step size.

In Example 68, the subject matter of Example 67 may include theprocessing circuitry further configured to compare the signal strengthof the first RAN to the increased threshold.

In Example 69, the subject matter of Example 66 may include wherein ifno increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs, theprocessing circuitry is further configured to decrease the threshold bya step size.

In Example 70, the subject matter of Example 69 may include theprocessing circuitry further configured to compare the signal strengthof the first RAN to the decreased threshold.

In Example 71, the subject matter of Examples 65-70 may include adetermining circuit configured to determine if the control channel wasreceived at the communication device.

In Example 72, the subject matter of Example 71 may include wherein ifthe determining circuit determines that the control channel was receivedat the communication device, the determining circuit is configured toincrease the threshold by a step size.

In Example 73, the subject matter of Example 72 may include theprocessing circuitry further configured to compare the signal strengthfrom the first RAN to the increased threshold.

In Example 74, the subject matter of Example 71 may include wherein ifthe determining circuit determines that the control channel was notreceived at the communication device, the determining circuit isconfigured to decrease the threshold by a step size.

In Example 75, the subject matter of Example 74 may include theprocessing circuitry further configured to compare the signal strengthfrom the first RAN to the decreased threshold.

In Example 76, the subject matter of Examples 65-75 may include whereinthe control channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

In Example 77, a non-transitory computer readable medium withprogrammable instructions, which when executed, cause a communicationdevice to suspend monitoring o a control channel of a first radio accessnetwork (RAN) on a frequency band shared with a second RAN, comprisingreceiving a signal from the second RAN on the frequency band; decodingthe received signal; identifying a duration during which the second RANoccupies the frequency band based on the decoded signal; and suspendingmonitoring of the control channel of the first RAN on the frequency bandfor at least the identified duration.

In Example 78, the subject matter of Example 77 may include resumingmonitoring of the control channel of the first RAN on the frequency bandafter the completion of the identified duration.

In Example 79, the subject matter of Examples 77-78 may include whereinthe frequency band is in an unlicensed frequency.

In Example 80, the subject matter of Examples 77-79 may include whereinthe first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 81, the subject matter of Examples 77-80 may include whereinthe control channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDDCH).

In Example 82, the subject matter of Examples 77-81 may include whereinthe second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 83, the subject matter of Example 82 may include wherein theshort range RAN is WiFi.

In Example 84, the subject matter of Example 83 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a preamble.

In Example 85, the subject matter of Example 84 may include wherein thepreamble comprises a Network Allocation Vector (NAV) value.

In Example 86, the subject matter of Example 85 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the NAVvalue from the preamble.

In Example 87, the subject matter of Example 86 may include wherein thereceived signal comprises a WiFi packet with a Request to Send/Clear toSend (RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value.

In Example 88, the subject matter of Example 87 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the durationvalue from the RTS/CTS frame.

In Example 89, the subject matter of Examples 77-88 may include furthercomprising suspending detection of the second RAN for at least theidentified duration.

In Example 90, a non-transitory computer readable medium withprogrammable instructions, which when executed cause a communicationdevice to monitor a shared frequency band for a control channeltransmitted on a first radio access network (RAN), comprising measuringa signal strength of a second RAN signal on the shared frequency band;and comparing the signal strength to a threshold; and suspendingmonitoring of the control channel on the shared frequency band when themeasured signal strength is greater or equal to a threshold.

In Example 91, the subject matter of Example 90 may include activatingmonitoring of the control channel on the shared frequency band when thesignal strength is less than the threshold.

In Example 92, the subject matter of Examples 90-91 may include whereinif monitoring for the control channel is suspended on the sharedfrequency band, determining if there is an increase in retransmissionsin the shared frequency band.

In Example 93, the subject matter of Example 92 may include wherein ifan increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs,increasing the threshold by a step size.

In Example 94, the subject matter of Example 93 may include comparingthe signal strength from the second RAN to the increased threshold.

In Example 95, the subject matter of Example 92 may include wherein ifno increase in retransmissions in the shared frequency band occurs,decreasing the threshold by a step size.

In Example 96, the subject matter of Example 95 may include comparingthe signal strength from the second RAN to the decreased threshold.

In Example 97, the subject matter of Example 91 may include wherein ifmonitoring for the control channel is activated on the shared frequencyband, determining if the control channel was received at thecommunication device.

In Example 98, the subject matter of Example 97 may include wherein ifthe control channel was received at the communication device, increasingthe threshold by a step size.

In Example 99, the subject matter of Example 98 may include comparingthe signal strength from the second RAN to the increased threshold.

In Example 100, the subject matter of Example 97 may include wherein ifthe control channel was not received at the communication device,decreasing the threshold by a step size.

In Example 101, the subject matter of Example 100 may include comparingthe signal strength from the second RAN to the decreased threshold.

In Example 102, the subject matter of Examples 90-101 may includewherein the control channel is a physical downlink control channel(PDCCH).

In Example 103, the subject matter of Examples 90-102 may includewherein the first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 104, the subject matter of Examples 90-103 may includewherein the second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 105, the subject matter of Example 104 may include whereinthe short range RAN is a WiFi network.

In Example 106, a non-transitory computer readable medium withprogrammable instructions when executed cause a communication device ona first radio access network (RAN) to suspend carrier sensing of asecond RAN on a frequency band shared by the first RAN and the secondRAN, comprising receiving a signal of the second RAN on the frequencyband; decoding the received signal; identifying a duration during whichthe second RAN occupies the frequency band based on the decoded signal;and suspending carrier sensing of the second RAN for at least for theidentified duration.

In Example 107, the subject matter of Example 106 may include activatingcarrier sensing for the second RAN on the frequency band after thecompletion of the identified duration.

In Example 108, the subject matter of Examples 106-107 may includewherein the communication device is an Evolved Node B (eNB).

In Example 109, the subject matter of Example 108 may include whereinthe first RAN is a long term evolution (LTE) network.

In Example 110, the subject matter of Examples 106-109 may includewherein the second RAN is a short range RAN.

In Example 111, the subject matter of Example 110 may include whereinthe short range RAN is a WiFi network.

In Example 112, the subject matter of Example 111 may include whereinthe received signal comprises a WiFi packet with a preamble.

In Example 113, the subject matter of Example 112 may include whereinthe preamble comprises a Network Allocation Vector (NAV) value.

In Example 114, the subject matter of Example 113 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on thefrequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting the NAVvalue from the preamble.

In Example 115, the subject matter of Example 112 may include whereinthe received signal comprises a WiFi packet with a Request to Send/Clearto Send (RTS/CTS) frame comprising a duration value.

In Example 116, the subject matter of Example 115 may include whereinidentifying the duration during which the second RAN communicates on theshared frequency band from the decoded signal comprises extracting theduration value from the RTS/CTS frame.

While the above descriptions and connected figures may depict electronicdevice components as separate elements, skilled persons will appreciatethe various possibilities to combine or integrate discrete elements intoa single element. Such may include combining two or more circuits forform a single circuit, mounting two or more circuits onto a common chipor chassis to form an integrated element, executing discrete softwarecomponents on a common processor core, etc. Conversely, skilled personswill recognize the possibility to separate a single element into two ormore discrete elements, such as splitting a single circuit into two ormore separate circuits, separating a chip or chassis into discreteelements originally provided thereon, separating a software componentinto two or more sections and executing each on a separate processorcore, etc.

It is appreciated that implementations of methods detailed herein aredemonstrative in nature, and are thus understood as capable of beingimplemented in a corresponding device. Likewise, it is appreciated thatimplementations of devices detailed herein are understood as capable ofbeing implemented as a corresponding method. It is thus understood thata device corresponding to a method detailed herein may include one ormore components configured to perform each aspect of the related method.

All acronyms defined in the above description additionally hold in allclaims included herein.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to specific embodiments, it should be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the appended claims. The scope of the invention is thusindicated by the appended claims and all changes which come within themeaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended tobe embraced.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus, comprising: a memory; and at leastone processor in communication with the memory and configured to: decodea signal received from a first carrier of a first radio accesstechnology (RAT); and suspend monitoring of a physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH) of a second carrier of a second RAT on a frequency bandfor at least a first-time duration, wherein the frequency band is sharedby the first RAT and the second RAT, and wherein the first-time durationis indicated by the decoded signal.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, whereinthe decoded signal includes at least one of a Network Allocation Vector(NAV) value, a Request to Send (RTS) frame, or a Clear to Send (CTS)frame.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the first-time duration isindicated by at least one of the NAV value, the RTS frame, or the CTSframe.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processoris further configured to: resume monitoring of the second RAT on thefrequency band after completion of the first-time duration.
 5. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein, to decode the signal, the at least oneprocessor is further configured to decode a WiFi packet with a preamble.6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the preamble includes a NetworkAllocation Vector (NAV) value, and wherein the first-time duration isindicated by the NAV value.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, todecode the signal, the at least one processor is further configured todecode a WiFi packet with a Request to Send/Clear to Send (RTS/CTS)frame.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first-time duration isindicated by the RTS/CTS frame.
 9. A method for communication,comprising: decoding, by a communication device, a signal received froma first carrier of a first radio access technology (RAT); andsuspending, by the communication device, monitoring of a physicaldownlink control channel (PDCCH) of a second carrier of a second RAT ona frequency band for at least a first-time duration, wherein thefrequency band is shared by the first RAT and the second RAT, andwherein the first-time duration is indicated by the decoded signal. 10.The method of claim 9, further comprising: resuming, by thecommunication device, monitoring of the second RAT on the frequency bandafter completion of the first-time duration.
 11. The method of claim 9,wherein, decoding, by the communication device, the signal comprisesdecoding, by the communication device, a WiFi packet with a preamble.12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first-time duration is indicatedby a Network Allocation Vector (NAV) value included in the preamble. 13.The method of claim 9, wherein, decoding, by the communication device,the signal comprises decoding, by the communication device, a WiFipacket with a Request to Send/Clear to Send (RTS/CTS) frame, wherein thefirst-time duration is indicated by the RTS/CTS frame.
 14. The method ofclaim 9, wherein the decoded signal includes at least one of a NetworkAllocation Vector (NAV) value, a Request to Send (RTS) frame, or a Clearto Send (CTS) frame.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first-timeduration is indicated by at least one of the NAV value, the RTS frame,or the CTS frame.
 16. A non-transitory computer readable memory mediumincluding programmable instructions executable to cause a communicationdevice to: decode a signal received from a first carrier of a firstradio access technology (RAT); and suspend monitoring of a physicaldownlink control channel (PDCCH) of a second carrier of a second RAT ona frequency band for at least a first-time duration, wherein thefrequency band is shared by the first RAT and the second RAT, andwherein the first-time duration is indicated by the decoded signal. 17.The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 16, whereinthe decoded signal includes at least one of a Network Allocation Vector(NAV) value, a Request to Send (RTS) frame, or a Clear to Send (CTS)frame, and wherein the first-time duration is indicated by at least oneof the NAV value, the RTS frame, or the CTS frame.
 18. Thenon-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 16, wherein theprogrammable instructions are further executable to cause thecommunication device to: resume monitoring of the second RAT on thefrequency band after completion of the first-time duration.
 19. Thenon-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 16, wherein, todecode the signal, the programmable instructions are further executableto cause the communication device to decode a WiFi packet with apreamble, wherein the first-time duration is indicated by a NetworkAllocation Vector (NAV) value included in the preamble.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 16, wherein, todecode the signal, the programmable instructions are further executableto cause the communication device to decode a a WiFi packet with aRequest to Send/Clear to Send (RTS/CTS) frame, wherein the first-timeduration is indicated by the RTS/CTS frame.